


Pearl Diver

by mo0nlights0nata



Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: Gender-Neutral Apprentice (The Arcana), Inspired by a Mitski Song, Musician Apprentice
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-28
Updated: 2020-11-28
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:54:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 977
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27761830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mo0nlights0nata/pseuds/mo0nlights0nata
Summary: At the masquerade, all those years ago, Asra enters one of the performance rooms, only to find himself entranced by a magical performer and their song.
Relationships: Apprentice/Asra (The Arcana)
Kudos: 8





	Pearl Diver

**Author's Note:**

> I have no idea what this is but I love mitski so here we are :)) This whole thing is basically about the song Pearl Diver by mitski so please go listen to that first! Or don’t I don’t really care. It’s a good song though and it always reminds me of The Arcana so I wrote this little thingy

“Mmm mmmmm mmm

Treasure hunter you are dead,

The light of the world is fading...”

He heard the voice as soon as he stepped into the large crowded room. There were at least a hundred people standing in the room crammed together shoulder to shoulder but nobody dare utter a word. Every single persons gaze was transfixed on a small, barely elevated stage at the front of the room. It was completely dark asides from a pale shimmer of light illuminating the sole performer on the stage. The only noise was the breaths of the audience and the smooth, lilting voice of the performer. 

“You cannot see the other end,

Your body’s lost all feeling...”

He soon found himself unable to tear his eyes away, his focus on nothing else. The singer continued their song but this time he could sense something had changed. They seemed to weave magic into their words, their aura dancing around them in glimmers of light, following the melody. It was beautiful and enchanting. The music flowed with the magic as the performer moved their hands gracefully through the air and the magic followed eagerly. Then, they formed shapes out of the light they created around them, a glowing, loose silhouette of a man falling deeper and deeper into a swirling whirlpool of purples, blues and magenta’s.

“Those creatures of your woken mind,

Don’t fear them or their hunger”

The figure struggled against the light pulling him in, as shadowy creatures began to pull at his legs. 

“Forgive the sea, follow the tide,

With the monsters on your shoulder”

Then the performer halts, the audience holding their breath in suspense as the glowing figure of the man continued struggling to no avail. The silence stretched on for perhaps merely a second but it felt like an eternity before the performers stunning voice suddenly shone through. 

“Pearl diver,  
Dive, dive deeper  
Pearl diver,  
Dive, dive down”

As the chorus continued, repeating the line, the man stopped struggling against the whirlpool and began to swim down. He swam and swam as the whirlpool stretched into a tunnel of purple light that wove its way through the audience, everyone’s eyes widening in awe whenever the magic passed by them. The performer shot their hands upwards and once again the light tunnel followed, along with the man. This keeps going until the performer brings the tunnels down again, stopping right in front of him. He stares at the tunnel twisting around him, glancing at the mischievous grin he could see peeking through from the performers calm and mysterious act. So they can tell he’s magic too. He smiles and fixes his gaze back on the lights around him. This time there’s something that the man is chasing, chasing it up into the air right around Asras head. His white curls ruffle as the man nearly reaches what he’s after but misses by a sliver. A tiny silver ball of light shining so bright it almost hurt his eyes. 

“Oh hunter, if you didn’t want the beautiful so badly

Perhaps you would’ve found it in your spirit singing softly”

The ball stops right in front of his eyes and he can’t resist the urge to reach out and try to grab it. 

But his fingers pass right through. 

The light disperses, turning into glitter that spreads across the room, filling the darkness with stars. He turns to the performer who smirks in amusement as they sing. 

“But hunter, you were human, don’t forget it and go safely

And I, I’ll live without you, though the struggle will be daily”

The illusionary stars shoot towards the center of the room, swirling inwards to form the ball once again, except this time the ball is bigger, and sealed inside is the figure of the glowing man. He pounds his fists agains the silver walls of the ball but it does not shatter. The illusion seems firm as steel. He screams and hits the glass but he’s trapped inside.

“Pearl diver,  
Dive, dive deeper  
Pearl diver,  
Dive, dive down”

The swirling colours from the beginning of the song reappear, twisting around the ball forming another whirlpool of light. The audience is captivated by the scene before them, their gaze fixated on the man trying to escape the ball. They pay less attention to the whirlpool, where the shadows are born again and twist menacingly along with the lights.

Pearl diver,  
Dive, deeper  
Pearl diver,  
Dive, dive down”

A small, almost unnoticeable crack appears on the surface of the ball, slowly growing wider as the man stops pounding and slumps against the wall of the sphere. The crack splits and veins out over the surface. In a split second the ball shatters into an explosion of light and shimmer. The man is now free. 

“Ooooh, ohhh ahhhh  
Ahhhh ahhh ohhh  
Oooooooooooo”

His freedom is short lived as the hidden shadow creatures leap into movement. They pounce, and devour the man. Soon, every trace of light in the performance room is snuffed out, the darkness thick and suffocating. The silence lasts only a moment, before the voice returns, and with it, a spark is ignited. 

“Treasure hunter you are dead,

The light of the world is fading...”

The spark grows into a purple flame, which grows into the shape of a sphere. The performer finishes the final line before dropping to their knees, the ball falls into the audience and hits the polished floor with a crack, and glitter fills the air again. It lands on the people, who now soaked in glitter, look up in awe at the performer who is now bowing serenely. Applause fills the room, whistles and shouts replacing the music that had once been there. Asra smiles and claps along, trying to figure out what to do with his newfound fascination with the performer. Beautiful. He thinks.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed this random shit even though it’s shit :)


End file.
